Knitting machine and method of knitting



' May 2, 1933. N, LEWN 1,907,185

KNITTING MACHINE AND METHOD OF KNITTING Original Filed May 29, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented May 2, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE NATHAN LEvnr, or TEENTON, NEW JERSEY, AssIGNoE. To 1H. BEIN'roN comm, or PHILADELPHIA PENNSYLVANIA, A coRPoEA'rIoN -oE PENNSYLVANIA- HNI'ITING MACHINE ANI) METHOD or IINITTI'Ne'r` Original application filed May 2 9, 1931, Serial No. 541,016. Divided andthis application filed November 21, 1931. seriaiNa 576,587. l

The principal object of this invention is to provide a new method of operating a cir cular independent needle rib knitting machine and to make a. new tubular knit .rib fabric formed of a weft body yarn having designs interlinit with or embroidered there--v on by'stitches of other warp yarns.

In the drawings: Fig. 1 illustrates the stitches in detail, Fig. 2 illustrates a section of fabric, Fig. 3 illustrates a diagrammatic the needles,

dles on line 4-4 of Fig. 3 and Fig. 5 illustrates the dles on line 5-5 of Fig.

As shown in Fig. 2 there is a. tubular section 6 of rib fabric having a design 7 on the face thereof. Obviously this design may vary as desired. In Fig. 1, an enlarged view of the stitches of a portion of the fabric shown in Fig. 2, including the design, is shown.

In Fig. 1 the rib fabric is composed of the plain outside wales 9 and the inside rib wales 8. The wales 8 contain stitches of the weft body yarn 11 exclusively, whereas the wales 9 contain stitches of the weft body yarn 11 and of the other warp yarns 10, 10, each independent respectively to a .wale 9. In the wales 9 the stitches of body yarn l1 are interknit with or drawn through the stitches 13 of the other yarns 10, in alternate succession where the design calls for the continuation of the. same. Preferably the other warp yarns 10, 10, arediferent in color from eachother and from the body yarn, so that a design may be formed, however the selection as to coloris entirely arbitrary. The best results are-obtained with the warpyarns equal to or slightly larger in diameter than the body yarn. At 14 is shown a portion of the yarn 10 as it extends from one stitch 13 to anotherV stitch 13 in the same Wale, ioating past the single intervening stitch of the body yarn 11. At certain times in accordance with the design, the yarns 10, 10, float, as at 15 and at 16, past more than a single stitch of the body yarn, in which case the successive viewof `Walesis substantially the same, the extra Fig. 4 illustrates the position ofthe ne'e-w 'open wider thanthe'stitches o position of the nee-` stitches of the body yarn 1l in the Wales 9, 9 are interknit'with ordrawn through each other, instead of through the stitches 13 of thewvarp yarns 10: It will'be seen therefore that in those plain wales where the yarns 10 are formed into stitches, that those plain wales contain twice the number of stitches of two' distinct' yarns that are knitted in each of the rib Wales or each of the other plain wales within algiven length of fabric, and that the overall length of all the into a raised or embroidered relation to the body stitches, and at the Asame time tend to cover up substantially yall of the single intervening stitches of the body yarn -so that the latter'canno't be seen upon casual inspection. Furthermore due to' the fact -that the entire fabric is' made up' of stitches each of which contains a single yarn only, it is possible to draw" the stitches into very small or tight loops in contradistinction to stitches that are made up `of avbody and a plating yarnv in the same sti'tolrl' By lsingle yarn is meant a yarn which'iinay contain one or more strands, the term being used to dis tinguish from a plurality of yarns such as are necessarily used in making plating stitches. The design and the outline thereof may vary as desired so that the same may be either parallel, at an dicular to the Wales.

' Referring now to Figs. 3 .to 5, the preferredfmethod `of`manipulating the needles to form the fabric will be described. The .relation'of the cylinder needles 17, and the dial needles y18 isthe sa'rneas inthe usual circular independent needle rib fmachines. The fingers 19 carrying the warp yarns 10 are disposed in their bed in-the relation to the needles 517 and 18 as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. Only those features of the 'means for operating the needles and fingers will be described which are in addition to or need special mention over the usual means. The. fingers 19 are moved about their pivot point from the position of Fig. -1 .to the position of Fig. 5 by means of the finger cani 20, the return movement being` made by they spring band 21, or by a vsuitable cam. The action of the end of the finger'adjacent the needle 17 to wrap the warp yarn 10 around the same is a camu-ling action and is well known in the art.

In Fig. 3 there is a diagrammatic representation. of the needles. The cylinder needles .17, .when they follow the )ath 2Q throughout are raised at. feed A by tlle usual means, to the position of Fig. i on line #-4.-

of Fig. 3. to clearing levclwhere the needle latches clear the old stitches of the weft body yarn 11 1). Thereafter the new stitches are formed ofthe body yarn as the needles 17 take the same and are drawn by stitch cam 24 down to the stitch level. beneath the said cam. At this point i. e. line 4--4. the'dial needles V1S are out and take the body yarn in the usual way,I that is. the cylinder needles draw the yarn over the dial needles, and the latter then form rib stitches thereof. In fact the entire knitting action at feed A is identical with the ordinary ac-4 tion of cylinder and dial needles forming the usual types of rib stitch of a body yarn and is therefore familiar to those skilled in the art. v

At feed B there is no weft or body yarn fed to the needles, but only the` warp yarns 10. and these are fed to selected needles only. If, at this feed, none of the needles 17 are selectively raised by the wheel 26 then they do not cast off their stitches of body yarn, but merely pass idly under the second stitch cam 25. and onto feed .A where regular knitting takes place on all the needles. If, however, certain needles such 27, 27 are raised by the wheel Q6 to the path 23, theseneedles reachthe latch-clearing level and their body yarn stitches slip down below their latches, these needles taking on a warp yarn 10,* as the fingers 19 are actuated at that time by the cam 20 and by spring 21 to cause the cam ends thereof to wrap the warp yarns around thel selected needles as shown in Fig.' 5. After the wrapping takes place, these selected needles pass under the second stitch cam 25 to draw the warp yarns into stitches 13 (Fig. 1), drawing the same through the body stitches which have just previously passed below the latches of said needles and then these needles continue on t0 feed A where regular rib knitting takes place on all the needles. At feed B the dial needles are as shown in Fig. 5, and since no body yarn is fed, only warp knitting takes place at this feed. vThe fingers 19 are each 5 associated individually with a needle 17 and are placed, in accordance with the desired design, with certain needles. They are thereafter actuated continuously by cam 20 at feed B, so that if a needle is raised such as needle 27, it is wrapped by the action of its own finger,-whercas if a needle is not raised and it has a finger associated with it, then the actuation of that finger is simply an idle movement, the needle not being high enough for cam contact between the finger and itself. No body yarn is fed at feed B, the needles which are selectively raised to form tliclesign cast off their stitches of body yarn and take a warp yarn from their respective fingers and knit the saine. At feed A the selected needles as Well as all the. others cast off their stitches of warp and of body yarns and take on the weft body yarn to knit the same.

If desired, stitch cam 25 may draw a longs er stitch than stitch cam 2st, without injuring the body stitches onnnselected needles, for the reason that at feed A the dial needles are out and the cylinder needles determine the stitch length by drawing their stitch over the dial needles, whereas at feed B the dial needles are in and the body stitches are formed so that there are no dial needles over which to strain the yarn with a slightly longer draw to the cylinder needles. This long draw on the selected needles acts t0 form the stitch, whereas this same longer draw on the unselected needles merely takes up on the body yarn stitches without injuring them.

In Fig. 3 an ordinary design wheel of common knowledge in the art is shown at 26 in dotted lines, as one type of selective cylinder needle raising means. It is obvious that any type of needle selecting means may be employed at feed B to perform this function of selectively raising certain needles to form a design.

vAt feed A the rib inside wales 8 (Fig. 1) and so much of the plain outside wales 9 as are formed of the body yarn 11 are made. At feed B only the stitches 13 of the warp yarns 10 are made as has been made clear in the foregoing specification.

This application is a division of my application Serial No. 541,016 filed May 29, 1931.

Having thus fully described my said inl vention, whatI claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patents is:

1. The method of operating a circular series of independent cylinder and dial needles and a series of wrap fingers at two feeds of a knitting machine which comprises the steps of actuating, the cylinder and dial needles at one feed and of actuating certain cylinder needles and the wrap fingers at the other feed.

2. The methodof knitting a tubular knit rib fabric of a weft body yarn and of warp design yarns on a circular independent needle rib knitting machine at two feeds, which comprises the steps of weft knitting of the body yarn at one feed and of warp knitting of the design yarns at the other feed.

3. The method of knitting a tubular knit rib fabric of a weft body yarn and of warp design yarns on a circular series of independent cylinder and dial needles and a series of wrap lingers at two feeds, which comprises the steps of actuating the cylinder and dial needles at oneV feed for weft knitting of the body dyarn and of actuating selected cylinder nee les and the warp fingers at the other feed for warp knitting of the design yarns.

4. A two-feed knitting machine comprising a circular series of independent dial and cylinder needles, a series of wrap fingers, means for actuating cylinder and dial needles at one feed to knit a rib fabric, and means for actuating certain cylinder needles and wrap fingers at the other feed for making designs on the rib fabric.

5. A two-feed rib knitting machine comprising a circular series of independent dial and cylinder needles, a series of wrap tingers means for weft knitting of the body yarn at one feed and means for warp knitting of the design yarns at the other feed.

6. A method of making patterned knitted fabric on a dial and cylinder rib knitting machine comprising knitting a body yarn on both cylinder and dial needles at a main feed, isolating selected cylinder needles in certain courses, supplying to said isolated needles pattern yarns specific to the individual needles, and knitting olf the loops of body yarn on said isolated needles only while holding the loops of body yarn on the other needles.

7. A method of making patterned knitted fabric on a circular rib knitting machine comprising knitting body yarn' at a main feed on both cylinder and dial needles, feeding into the hooks of one or more needles at another point pattern yarns individual to said needles, and actuating said needles to knit olf their body yarn stitches and to form loops of the pattern yarns before they again take body yarn.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

NATHAN LEVIN. 

